Madison, Wis. - Friday afternoon the men's and women's cross country teams participated in the Great Lakes Regional where Clare Fischer finished 18th overall leading the women's team meet its goal of a top ten finish, and their best ever at a regional. Fischer not only finished in the top 20, but also received All-Region Honors, making her only the second female runner in Xavier history to earn the accolade. In the process, Fischer was also able to set her personal best time of 20:47.

"The overall race of the day goes to Clare Fischer. Clare ran nearly a perfect race," said Head Coach Ryan Orner. "I'm very proud of Clare and her finish today because she has worked so hard over the past year to get to where she was today. She's always humble, she's so passionate about our team and is truly a great example of a Xavier University student-athlete."

The women's team capped off a successful season by meeting their team goal of a top 10 finish, and in the process beating a number of strong teams.

"As a team there is no better feeling then when everything comes together in the race that matters most," said Coach Orner. "Our girls did a great job of handling the pressure that comes along with the expectations that I set for them as their coach as well as the pressure they feel competing in one of the strongest regions in the country"

The men's team also ran against strong competition and finished 26th overall. Junior Cory Zielinksi was the top runner for the men finishing 119th with a time of 33:19. Right behind Zielinski were junior Connor Buchholz (133rd, 33:32), senior Spencer Liechty (137th, 33:35), freshman Carter Macey (150th, 33:48) and freshman Aaron Peterson (156th, 34:10).

Clare Fischer's top 25 finish makes her eligible to move forward to the NCAA Championship. The NCAA selection process will take place Saturday at 3:00 p.m. where it will be decided if she gets an at-large bid.